Into the Fire
by GlitterDemon
Summary: A short depiction of what Cloud goes through as he watches Nibelheim burn and the people he knows being killed at the hands of Sephiroth.
1. Default Chapter

A/n: This is just a short story, probably only going to be two chapters. I'm growing quite fond of just sitting down and writing whatever comes into my head. So enjoy, or not, it's your call. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -  
  
I don't know when I passed out, but it was the intense heat that woke me. Even with my eyes closed, I could see a flickering orange light. I moved one arm, then the other, finally opening my eyes.  
  
All I could see were flames. They hungrily consumed the shops, the houses, the bodies of the slain people. My neighbors. My home. Nibelheim.  
  
"Hey, it's you!" A man said next to me, making me jump. He was the only other person I could see who was still alive. At first I thought he was talking to me, and a cold sweat broke out on my forehead despite the heat. I had kept my helmet on the entire time, no one in Nibelheim had seen I was there. So why was he talking to me?  
  
Turning around, I saw another living person. Zack, First Class member of SOLDIER, was running out of the old Shin-Ra mansion. The man must be talking to him, I decided. Zack stopped, surveying the destruction around him, then looked from me to the old man.  
  
"You're still sane, right?" The man asked Zack, who nodded in reply. Even though he'd been nice to me on the ride here, asking about my motion sickness, making small talk, I hated him. To me, he represented everything I couldn't be. He was strong, I was weak. He had made it into SOLDIER, risen to the top, where I was stuck at the bottom, doomed to live out the rest of my life as a lowly Shin-Ra MP. Zack jumped over some flames, watching as the man ran into a house to look for survivors. That's when I heard it. The sound of a blade being unsheathed, metal cutting into flesh. The screams of the villagers, dying. Zack and I both looked toward the stairs leading to the mansion.  
  
Sephiroth was there, mercilessly cutting down people left and right. His laugh blended with their screams. He looked up at me through a curtain of silver hair, green mako eyes penetrating into mine. Then, without a word, he turned and left, walking through the fire as if impervious to it. He was the great General Sephiroth, so for all I knew, he really was impervious to it.  
  
"Sephiroth . . .you've gone too far." I heard Zack say. Then he too disappeared through the flames, chasing after the black-caped man.  
  
My thoughts then went to my own house, where I knew my mother still lived, though I hadn't mustered up the courage to visit her. I had left two years ago to join SOLDIER, and I had failed. I didn't want to see the disappointed look on her face as I told her. She would have told me to come back home, trapping me in Nibelheim forever. As bad as spending the rest of my life in Shin-Ra would be, spending it here would be worse. Except now, I didn't even have a home to come back to.  
  
Running into the house, the place I had spent fourteen years of my life, I struggled to see through the smoke. A burning rafter crashed to the floor on my left, and I prayed my mother wasn't somewhere behind it. Heading into the kitchen, I coughed as caustic smoke filled my lungs and eyes, burning my chest as I tried to breathe. There, on the floor, was my mother.  
  
I knelt down, turned her over onto her back, but she wasn't moving. Her hair, blond like mine, covered her face. She seemed almost tranquil. But I couldn't believe it. This woman, perfectly healthy a few days ago, was now dead.  
  
::Sephiroth,:: I thought, my mind filling with anger and hate. ::You did this. You will pay.::  
  
Before I knew it, I was out of the burning door, the collapsing village, and on my way to the mako reactor at Mt. Nibel. I knew that was where Sephiroth was headed, and I was going to make sure he didn't come out alive. 


	2. Chapter Two

As I ran into the reactor, all I could see was the flames consuming Nibelheim, as if the fire had burned the image into my mind. On the ground before the entrance lay a man, a gaping sword wound in his chest. Another helpless victim of Sephiroth. As I got closer, I recognized the face. It was Tifa's father. Did that mean Tifa was here too? I couldn't remember seeing her in town, but that didn't mean she hadn't been there.  
  
I slowly walked into the core of the reactor, fury building inside me. I saw Tifa at the top of the stairs, and my heart leapt. She wasn't dead. But she seemed to be struggling with someone. My blood ran cold as I saw the silver hair, the black clothes, and finally, the cold, deadly gleam of the Masamune. Tifa fell back, coming to rest at the foot of the stairs. She was struggling to breathe, a long, deep gash across her chest. I had failed her. Broken my promise.  
  
My mind traveled back over old paths, to that night two years ago, when I had asked Tifa to meet me at the well. I didn't know her very well back then. In fact, I thought she hated me. But I was desperate, craving her attention, wanting only to be noticed. So I had timidly asked her father to deliver a note to her before running off.  
  
Then came the waiting. I sat for hours on top of the old well at the center of town. Overhead, the stars gleamed beautifully and coldly in the crisp mountain air. I heard footsteps, and looked over my shoulder to see Tifa walking up behind me. I can still remember the joy that welled up inside me at that moment. I didn't think she would come. Yet there she stood, more beautiful than the stars themselves. She smiled at me uncertainly, probably wondering what she was doing here as much as I was. Nevertheless, she sat down. It took all my courage, but I managed to talk to her. I told her I was leaving the next day, travelling to Midgar to join SOLDIER. I would become strong, like the Great Sephiroth that everyone told stories about. Tifa's eyes had sparkled as she looked up at me.  
  
"Will you promise me something?" She had asked, taking me by surprise. Hesitantly, I nodded. Tifa hugged her knees to her chest, looking wistfully at the sky. In her eyes, I could see the reflection of the stars. I had decided right then it was the most beautiful thing I had ever seen. No amount of stars in the sky would ever compare to the ones in her eyes right then.  
  
"Whenever I'm in trouble, my hero will come rescue me." She had said. "I want to experience that, just once." I had agreed. I would become the best SOLDIER ever, better than Sephiroth. I would make Tifa proud.  
  
Now I had broken that promise. Arrived too late, like always. A groan drew my attention to the strange pods that filled the room. Zack lay sprawled on top of one, clutching his enormous Buster Sword. I had tried to lift it once, on the way here, and could barely keep it off the ground. He was so strong. Yet now he lay, bruised and bloodied, moaning in agony. I ran up the stairs to him. His glowing mako eyes blinked, trying to focus on my face, still hidden behind the mask.  
  
"Cl. . .Cloud?" He asked brokenly. I nodded, my eyes glancing up at the door Sephiroth had passed through. Across the top large letters spelled out "Jenova." I looked back at Zack, who followed my gaze, then nodded faintly. I nodded back, gathering all my strength to take the Buster Sword from him. It didn't seem as heavy this time, to my surprise. Without looking back, I ran up the stairs and into the darkness beyond.  
  
An eerie blue glow filled the chamber, coming from a large holding tank with some sort of creature inside. Sephiroth stood in front of it, with his back to me. My body shook with anger, adrenaline pumped through my body, erasing all fear. I saw only my hatred. My need to get revenge on this monster who had destroyed my life. Without thinking, I ran up to him, lifting Zack's huge sword with ease. Sephiroth glimpsed me out of the corner of his eye, but it was too late. Screaming in anger, I drove the blade through his chest. His green eyes widened in shock as he fell.  
  
"Who. . .who are you?" He muttered.  
  
"My home. . .Tifa. . .my friends . . .give it back!" I said through clenched teeth. Pulling out the sword, I walked away. I lay the sword down, all my energy spent, but my anger far from over. It consumed me, my hatred for Sephiroth growing with every second. It didn't matter if I had killed him or not, my hatred for him would always live. With shaking hands I pulled the helmet off my head, pushing my sweat-soaked bangs out of my eyes. I walked out of the room, hurrying down the stairs, I knelt down before Tifa. Her breathing was slow, shallow, but she was still alive. Carefully, I picked her up. Her eyes fluttered open as I carried her out of the way. I saw recognition fill her eyes, and winced inwardly. I hadn't wanted her to see me like this.  
  
"Cloud . . ." she said weakly as I gently laid her against a wall. "You came . . .you kept your promise. . ." I smiled at her, at her belief that I had saved her, when in reality I had hidden from her. Footsteps reached my ears, and I looked up to see Sephiroth emerge at the top of the stairs. He looked like he was having trouble standing, but the sword wound I had given him already seemed to be healing. My eyes widened in shock. How could that be?  
  
As he came down the stairs, I could see he had something in his hand. I almost retched as I saw it was the head of the thing in that tank. Where was he going with it? What did he plan to do. He disappeared through the door, and I stood up, walking back to the foot of the staircase.  
  
"Cloud. . ." I heard Zack mutter from behind me. "Kill Sephiroth. . ." He didn't have to tell me twice. I ran out the door, watching as Sephiroth walked across the catwalk.  
  
"Sephiroth!" I yelled. He paused, sword in one hand, the head in the other. He seemed to sigh as he turned around.  
  
And thrust the cold blade of the Masamune through my abdomen. It was as causal a gesture as if he had swatted a fly. And that's all I was to him. An insect, a nuisance, a small, weak being easily eliminated.  
  
"Don't. Push Your luck." He said coldly, using the sword to lift me off the ground. No. I wasn't an insect. I wasn't going to die like that. I would show him that I was stronger. I had to! For Nibelheim . . .for Tifa. I could feel rage boiling up within me. My eyes clouded over, all I could see was red. My body shook with fury as I summoned all my energy, grasping the blade of Sephiroth's sword with both hands. His eyes widened as I forced myself back to the ground. Slowly I pulled the sword from my body. My angry, hate-filled eyes met his as I turned the tables. This time I was the one lifting him off the ground.  
  
His eyes, glowing with the green color of mako, still looked up at me with amazement as I threw him over the railing, and he fell into the Lifestream below.  
  
~Fin 


End file.
